Tuesday, August 05, 2008

Cold Oatmeal and Other Delights

I swear in a previous life I must have been a homing pigeon. It would help to explain why, although I flap frantically toward the far horizon, I so often end up nesting in the same dang tree.

Take my relationship with color. For years, my personal rainbow began with oatmeal and ended with taupe. In a wild moment, I might dally with forest green. I even whined, at length, in this very blog that there was too much fun sock yarn on store shelves and not enough navy blue.

Then came the lime green sock moment, and the one-two punch of Brandon Mably and Kaffe Fassett in a single day. I could almost feel the shackles falling from my wrists, or the scales dropping from my eyes, or the weight lifting off my shoulders, or the cows jumping out of my rucksack.

I was free, I thought. Free at last. Why, I even made a scarf out of Noro!

Then I went to Knitting Camp, where I sat for a week surrounded by museum-quality colorwork and piles of peerless yarn. And when I decided to choose a little Shetland jumper weight to make myself a hat, this is what I picked: heathery oatmeal and heathery blue.

I'm finding that as I knit them together, I can barely see the difference. Zing.

Mind you, I'm in love with the pattern: Meg Swansen's Dubbelmössa Hat from Handknitting with Meg Swansen. And this is my first encounter with real Shetland yarn, and I wish I had a room full of it. I'm just not certain whether, in the finished piece, this combination is going to be charmingly subtle or dull as Wal-Mart's new line of naughty lingerie designed by Lynne Cheney.

I've decided to finish it and find out.

Meanwhile, I've been crawling up the center of the Wedding Ring Shawl. And I do mean crawling.

The needle's the problem. I started with an Addi size 0, and found the tips weren't sharp enough to handle decreases in cobweb weight. So I ordered a Knitpicks size 0, and find that while the tips are ideal, every single stitch snags on the join between cable and needle.* So I'm open to suggestions from those who work with cobweb weight. What the heck do you use?

Noted with Pleasure

Several times I've nearly thrown the shawl across the room in frustration, although lace doesn't weigh enough to hit the wall with a satisfying smack. But my nerves have been soothed to a degree by a review copy of Richard Rutt's A History of Hand Knitting that was sent to me by Knitting Out Loud, a publisher of knitting-related audio books.

I suspect that the publisher expected me to question the selection of a woman, Melissa Hughes, to read the only book in her catalogue written by a man. In the letter that accompanied my copy, she explained at length her reasons for the choice.

The fact is, Melissa Hughes needs no excuses. She's a marvel. Rutt's text is a bear to read aloud, but Hughes never falters. The multiple languages (including German, French, Italian, Arabic, Turkish, Norwegian, Swedish, et al.) roll trippingly off her tongue. She capably brings to life at least four historical/regional inflections of English. And she never goes flat, not even in the middle of long technical passages. It's a bravura performance; and for a history geek like me, this audio version of an old favorite is a welcome companion.

That said, I do hope Knitting Out Loud will consider adding a male reader or two to the stable as future projects are developed. What's written by the goose may still be read with excellent effect by the gander, eh?

Finally, in case you've been asleep this week, I'd like to draw your attention to the launch of www.twistcollective.com, an online knitting magazine that launched with flags flying on August 1. I won't pretend to be unbiased about it because I'm not–they hired me to do an illustration for Ann and Kay's advice column.

Twist Collective departs from the all-for-free model of online knitting magazines to which we've become accustomed. The articles are free, but the patterns are available for purchase. Most of the money from pattern sales goes directly to the designers, who thereby stand to make a decent profit from their work.

There's been a lot of cheering for the gorgeous designs and the concept; and also some complaining about customers being bled dry while the designers grow fat and rich at $7 per pattern. That the cheers outnumber the complaints is, I think, a happy sign that most knitters recognize the right of artists to fair compensation–something the industry has often not recognized in the past.

Makes me proud to be knitter, yes it does, even if my colorwork looks like cold mush and my lace has developed a limp.

*In order to avoid starting one of those stupid Internet rumors, I want to clarify that the needles themselves are (so far as I can tell) free of defects and they'd be great with a thicker yarn–even, I think, a standard laceweight. They just don't suit cobweb weight, which is so wispy it'll snag on the patterns in busy Linoleum. I sure appreciate the advice, though - sounds like lace Addis will be the way to go.

Hmm, I might call Knit Picks customer service and tell them the problem. Their customer service is quite good and they will probably send you another circular. I've not had any problem with the joins on my KP needles (but then, I've also not worked with cobweb weight yarn). It might not fix it, but just in case you got a dud, it might be worthwhile.

I am using some Addis with the lace tips right now, and they seem very nice. I would prefer them a bit pointier, actually, but they are much pointier than the regular Addi turbos. (I realize this is a completely original suggestion, at this point in the comments.)

As for the hat, and how subtle the colors are, they are beautiful, but you may want to add the 'pop' of a bit of navy blue (in this instance, I think navy would be a pop).

I think the Twist Collective is wonderful. The difference for me is, until I have swatched (as the information is provided for that), I will not actually buy the pattern. I will just be a bit more careful than my pattern hoarding from Knitty, or Knitting Daily. I think it may make a change, as far as a pattern going 'viral'. And, if a pattern does go viral, then the designer deserves every penny they earn.

Second the suggestion to contact Knit Picks about your join problem. They have been very good about replacing a couple bad cables in my Options set.

In the meantime, here's a quick and dirty fix. Apply some Super Glue over the join. (Um, take your knitting off the needle first, 'kay?) Let it cure, sand it down with a fine emery board; rinse and repeat if necessary until the join is smooth. This is a variation of the method used by manicurists to do silk nail wraps. The SG is strong and hard and can be sanded to a satin smoothness. I have used SG to mend a KP cable where the cable had completely parted from the cable end, and it worked perfectly.

I for one find your oatmeal and blue-gray hat charming and subtle beautiful. So there.

Knotions online magazine (knotions.com) also launched this week. Has some non-name designers and all the patterns are free. I was not hired by them, but would like to mention Theresa's great job on it.

Thankfully, I haven't seen the complaining about paying for the patterns. I can say I had a few other critiques of the mag, but nothing mean, just personal opinions and I have those for every magazine(I also know that if there is nothing nice to say don't say anything at all). I am in the... if it isn't worth your money don't buy it but leave me alone if I think it is worth my dolla's :-/I wonder about the sweater, I have seen some off-white with that kind of blue, but never the oatmeal. It might just be my new favorite color combination(though I may change my mind, you never know).

I am also working with the cobweb silk on this shawl and have had the same needle problem. The "new" Addi Lace needles (red cable) don't come in sizes smaller than US 1. The Addi's labeled "Lace" that are smaller than US 1 (gold cable), don't have sharp enough tips. No LYS had anything, so I bought several types of needles from Lacis.com, hoping something would work. I found that the US 0 Hiya Hiya points are sharp enough but the silk does catch now and then on the join. I'm going to try the super glue trick suggested by the earlier commenter. Please let us know if you find something else that works well. Thanks, Deidre

My first faltering attempts to knit cobweb weight (Sharon Miller's Rosebud Shawl) are only possible with the assistance of Addi Lace needles (albeit in a considerably larger size).

There is a retired bishop at my church who trained with Richard Rutt, and was later a canon at Leicester Cathedral when Rutt became bishop. The young Richard Rutt was apparently frequently to be found on the boundary of the cricket pitch, reading Latin verse, and complaining vociferously if anyone hit a ball in his direction.

I swatched some socks to be my first colourwork project in just those shades. Only lighter. And possibly, closer in tone. Very foggy. Not at all zingy. I like fog, though. (I never did start that particular project.)

i just finished knitting sharon miller's unst stole a few weeks ago, using my addi turbo circulars in a size zero (2 mm) and a cobweb weight yarn. while i longed for an addi lace needle, especially when unknitting something, addi does not make a size zero yet. as you well know. if you have your heart set on the look you get with your size zero needles, i think you will just have to suck it up and knit on. that your yarn snags on the join of the knitpicks needle would be more of a frustration to me than the relative pointiness of the needle tip. and the possibility of breakage with such a fine yarn is always there.

(1) Hiya Hiya needles. Very pointy, not too expensive, they come in small sizes. I have knit beaded purses with them, and have been happy

(2) Blue and oatmeal.. what can I say, I'm in a color rut myself. only with me it's grey..so to me, your blue and oatmeal is like a wild party.

(3) Pattern designers deserve every penny they get for the hours and hours they put into designing, knitting, re designing, re knitting, writing, rewriting, test knitting their work. The bigger question is how to get other knitters to STOP asking me for photocopies of patterns I paid for?????

oh god, oh god... my head is spinning and I'm feeling sick. Knitting Out Loud is the name of my knitting group... I don't think the knitting world needs another copyright infringement case, does it?

re: Needles: Have you tried the Clover Takumi Velvet? I'm knitting some lace with them right now and aren't finding it too snaggy. I'm just not sure about the tips on the small sizes, however, being wooden they could be sharpened.

While I don't care much for the layout of Twist Collective, I am planning a couple of purchases. $7 for a pdf really is MORE than I'd like to pay, but that's because I want everything for free. Designers should be paid for their work - period, end of discussion.

I'm sure someone has said this, but I didn't find it quickly ... have you tried using the little tightening stick to get the join between the needle and the cable really, really tight? I often find that works, but then, I'm not working with really tiny yarn either.

7 dollars for a great pattern. i think it is cheap. one should worship and adore people who take the time to design and then sit down and write patterns. and people like adrian bizilia and kate gilbert should really be rewarded for all their free patterns that allow people all over the world to wear pirate hats and clapotis shawls. it is strange that some people feel proud to be knitters but they almost think writing patterns is a picnic. oh my. it annoys me. oatmeal is my fave colour. i understand you completely. and i am so sad that you never made it to europe i.e. denmark with your 1000 knitters project.

I think that you'll be pleasantly surprised with your Dubbelmossa in those colors! It may seem subtle now, but I'm betting that it will be gorgeous when it's finished. (although if you hate it, I'll feel terrible, since I told you that I thought that they went together beautifully at camp!)

1) I think that being able to buy a single pattern v. the whole magazine (the all or nothing alternative) is fantastic: I can buy only what I like.

2) Who said you had to finish the lace tomorrow?? Don't listen to them. Savor it.

3) A kind soul from your comments passed this on to me: Hiya Hiya needles at http://www.knittingzone.com/ Personally haven't tried them, but given the super tiny sizes they come in (00000 ???? in a circ???) perhaps they have the snagging thing all figured out.

I second the idea of using superglue or clear nail polish to smooth the joins. You might want to add a manicurist's buffing stick to your toolbox, for getting those reinforced joins extra smooth.

For cobweb, I have had the best success using either long straight needles or some antique circs I picked up - I think they are Susan Bates (maybe, but there are no identifying marks), but they are at least 30 years old, so good luck finding them. If you really get into a bind, I'd be willing to loan them to you. :)

A drop of clear nailpolish (or sparkly lime green to match your socks if you prefer) worked great for me to fill in the little crack in the join. Capilary effect pulls it around, just don't glop it on, and let it dry really well (keep the yarn away!). I saw someone else suggest this, too - yea creative problem solvers!

You can use gel super glue to build up a smooth transition if needed. Manicure files will give a flawless transition if there are bumps.

Thought you might be interested to know... I recently got back from China, and your blog is great-firewalled there. At first I thought it was because of your Buddhist connections, but it appears that all of blogspot is non grata in the middle kingdom.

Thank you Franklin and many readers for the nail polish tips, super glue tips, filing wood needle tips pointier, and pointiest tip tips. If you know a woodworker buddy or someone who works in metal arts, they could probably sharpen any of your needles for you. The cable joins -- always an issue! I have been after my brother the chemist, but clearly should have asked my manicurist or Dolores! P.S. At one time Addy would make circulars to order any length you want (tempting to order outrageous sizes just because you can!) I don't know if they still do.

Right now I'm knitting cobweb with Knitpicks Harmony circulars and not finding them too bad. The join catches a bit but it just takes a second to dislodge, so it's no big deal. The best cobweb-knitting needles I've ever owned were 2mm grey Inoxes—no snag at all—but when I bought another set the join snagged stitches like you wouldn't believe. Hmph.

Inoxes might be worth trying, though, if you can inspect the join personally in person before you buy.

Have you tried Inox needles? I've heard and read that they're preferred by some for cobweb weight lace knitting. Also, I'd try leaving a message at Heirloom Knitting's site or Galena's. Addi lace needles are very nice but I'm not sure if you're already using them.

Addi Lace needles for sure. Light, pointy as hell, great flexible cables with perfect joins. My Addi Lace needles are the only circulars I haven't replaced with KnitPicks. They'll have to be pried from my cold dead fingers.

One funny caution however. These needles are SO light it's easy to lose track of them WHILE knitting! The first time I used a pair to knit a lace scarf I kept inadvertently letting go of one end of the needle becaause it had no weight at all and my fingers lost track of the fact that it was there at all. Got used to it after a few pattern repeats though.

Have you checked out Heirloom Knitting (or other wise known as Princess 2.0) on ravelry yet? They have postings about which needles used to knit the Princess Shawl. Since it's the same designer I'm sure the tips/ideas would transfer to the Wedding Ring Shawl.

I have had a lot of problems with cobweb weight yarns and needles as well on my WRS which had been in hibernation. I put the border stitches on HiyaHiya since there are no US 0 in the Addi lace yet and the join is not bad at all. Not as pointy as Addi lace or even Inox, but I think they will be good enough. Your WRS looks wonderful so far.

As everyone says, the Addi lace needles are lovely. I haven't used the tiny tiny tiny ones since I am a more hulking sort of person, but the 4mms are bliss. I hear you about your personal rainbow: I can't wear oatmeal and taupe makes me look as if I've died, but I do like a nice grey - I'm wearing grey nail polish right now.

You are an artist . . . I would have looked at the wedding shawl and laughed myself hysterical rather than even start.

I have many knitpicks needles. Many, like the entire Options set and several Harmony tips and needles. I have had problems with only two (one Harmony had a snag and a joint issue). When I called customer service, they were incredibly kind and wonderful and sent me replacement products. VERY QUICKLY.

Good, I was going to suggest lace Addi's. I have been desperate to start a new lace project and I can't cause I need to finish what I have on my needles and all of my yarn is packed to move to the new house in a week.

OK. I sent an e-mail to Heirloom Knitting explaining the problem and inquiring what needles they would recommend. Sharon Miller herself responded, and here is what she said "Yes, I have the same problem which is 'got around' to an extent like this -

Put a very tiny elastic band on the needle tip and wrap it on tightly, then slide this 'ring' to the join. Do so to the other needle. Then the stitches can't travel pass the joins except when you want them to and have removed the band, - for pattern checking. You must use a stitch stopper to stop the stitches sliding off the needle with this method.

The above will work in most cases but if, you've too many stitches for it to work, (knitting 'in the round' for instance) then, at the start of each section, tightly gather the ssts on the lh needle into a bunch and push/ rotate them over the join to get the most of them in readiness.

It is a problem with all circulars and fine yarns, I've thought many times on how it could be resolved, but glue may make a problem worse, and the above does work, tedious as it can be. I'd rather have the sharp points too!

The KnitPicks needle joins seem to vary in quality--I have a couple of size 0 circulars that have very smooth joins, and they are actually my favorites for cobweb work (I'm using one for the Princess shawl). I like my Hiya Hiya needles, too, but I haven't tried them in a 0, so I can't speak to the smoothness of the join.

Franklin,First of all, I love your blog. I check up on you right after YH.Two things I would like to bring to your attention. First of all, when I google "panopticon" you are now listed first on google responses. Congratulations on that, you've moved up at least 5 slots since I started reading you.Second, check out Moonrise supplies by Sandy Terp. I trust her completely and she has some very small gauge circulars, I think imported from Japan. Good luck!

Everyone's talking about needles, but I want to say something about Twistcollective: I have stacks of knitting magazines full of patterns that are inspiring, but realistically I will only ever use/make a few of them. At best. And I paid, oh four or five bucks for each of those magazines (I subscribe.) That's a lot of dollars (no regrets) tied up in patterns I won't use.

I think Twistcollective's system is brilliant! You get to read the magazine and get inspired by the photos and articles, but it doesn't cost anything unless you want the pattern in your hand.

As to the layout, I like it. It's not the usual web system, more like flipping the pages of a paper magazine.

Hi Franklin- Wait a month or two and there'll be new sizes of the Addi Lace needles - down to 0 and I think even finer, plus they'll be making some of the smaller in-between sizes that we've all been wanting for decades. So it was you who did the illustration for Ann and Kay's page - I thought I recognized a Delores-like feeling!

t read on the Subway Knitter's blog (http://www.interweave.com/knit/books/mittens.asp) that she gets a mere 35 cents for each download of her fabulous pattern for the Charlie Card mittens (or "Subway Mittens," as IK renamed them). That's just 10% of the price paid for each download.

I support efforts like the Twist Collective wholeheartedly (and with as much of my paycheck as I can afford). I think the designers should get every penny. Where would be without them?

I would suggest the Addi Lace needles. They have pointier tips than regular Addi's with a bit of a coating of some kind to make them a hair less slippery than the regular ones. I have used them for Magic Loop socks & LOVE them. I think they are the perfect needle (for me anyway).

I forgot to say that I too am a lover of the heathery oatmeal (& the gray to a lesser extent) even though I also like a lot of bright colors. There is just something so subtle & lovely about it - definitely great for lace esp shawls..

I forgot to mention yesterday, if you are inclined towards straight needles for your lace project, signature Needle arts makes LOVELY needles, you can choose the length, the tip (stilleto is called for here) the color and the design on the end of the needle. I bought a pair at Stitches west, and while I don't use straight needles to often, I do love these little babes. Also, they are finished in a way (tiny tiny grooves, like on a record) so that your work doesn't slip around. They are pricey, but ohhhhh they are worth every penny. good luck.

the color combo is lovely...it's just not quite contrasty enough for colorwork methinks :-( i tend to have the same problem choosing colors that contrast enough...which i get around by having someone else choose em for me ;-)

would you believe i'm knitting with cobweb on 4s? and yes with the addi lace needles it works up a treat. unfortunately as many others have said, the 0s aren't out yet, and yes i'm waiting impatiently for those too! i've gotten really enthused about the addi lace needles and am using them for darn near everything these days, especially socks.

can't wait to see your shawl done (yes i know i have to)...i couldn't work up enough nerve to order it myself *sigh*

Some people are born with extra color receptors in their eyes that allows them to distinguish extremely subtle variations in shade and hue. You probably fall into the additionally gifted category. As we age, our rods and cones burn out, and we wind up as grandmothers mixing orange and purple and turquoise with chartreuse and day-glow yellow.

I'm using similar colors for an Irish Hiking Scarf, but I'm also using a medium blue, and shocking pink (subtle I'm not). What about a deep eggplant with either of those colors? And why aren't you making the hat in the university colors (snort)? They keep sending mail to my daughter--but never any cash to go with it.MIchelene

Twist Collective is wonderful! What a well-thought out launch. The art direction is fantastic (love the yarn sample pages), the article selection is rich in information (Cat Bordhi! Woohoo) and $7 for a very hip Adrian Bizilia pattern can't be beat. Count me as a happy visitor to the new site.

As I was scrolling down my RSS feed, I saw the scrumptious combination you're disparaging, and decided I needed to read the post. I mean . . . wow. I want clothing in that palette. And to put things in a little bit of perspective, I am the sort of 18-year-old girl who wears wings to school for the hell of it, and is a devotee of loud, mismatched socks with silver pumps, and just in general has a very different fashion history from yourself.

forgot to mention... there's nothing wrong with your color choices. the problem you're having is a VALUE problem... the oatmeal and heather blue, while far different in hue, are too close in value to have the contrast you want. Color is not all that important in our visual field.

I guess I wish the Twist Collective would not be referred to as a magazine. If you bought all the patterns it would set you back $140-ish. That's a lot for a "magazine." It's really a catalogue. THe designers get a "healthy percentage" of what the pattern brings in, which sounds vague. I guess that means a designer could possibly get nothing for all their work.

I'm not going to worry about how much "Twist Collective" charges for their patterns ... That's not because I'm a wealthy knitter. It's because their site is incredibly difficult to navigate and I have therefore been unable to find a full photograph of any item for which they are selling their patterns. Elbows, yes. Necklines, yes. Cable details, yes. But full garment? Size range? Stitch pattern / construction methods? No, no, and no.

And, oh -- I also haven't been able to find the column Franklin drew the cartoon for, so I haven't seen the cartoon either.

Those colors aren't mush. I love them :) You just need to call them something artsier, say, "Sand and Sky" - see now, isn't that better? And then call the finished hat the "Summer at the Beach" version. Yeah, that's it. Except it's a winter hat x 2. Oh well.

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